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Saturday, December 3, 2011

"Amy and Roger's Epic Detour" by Morgan Matson

Release Date: May 4th, 2010

Publisher: Simon & Schuster
Format: Hardcover
Age Group: Young Adult

﻿Amy Curry thinks her life sucks. Her mom decides to move from California to Connecticut to start anew—just in time for Amy's senior year. Her dad recently died in a car accident. So Amy embarks on a road trip to escape from it all, driving cross-country from the home she's always known toward her new life. Joining Amy on the road trip is Roger, the son of Amy's mother's old friend. Amy hasn’t seen him in years, and she is less than thrilled to be driving across the country with a guy she barely knows. So she's surprised to find that she is developing a crush on him. At the same time, she’s coming to terms with her father’s death and how to put her own life back together after the accident. Told in traditional narrative as well as scraps from the road—diner napkins, motel receipts, postcards—this is the story of one girl's journey to find herself.

This is most definitely one of my favorite road trip books. In fact, as soon as I was done reading, I was all set to pack up my car and hit the road. Unfortunately, life doesn't always allow for impromptu cross country road tripping. Since I couldn't go to all of these cool tourist places and other random stops on my own, I was happy to experience them through Amy and Roger.

After her father dies, Amy's mom decides to move them from California to Connecticut. Amy isn't exactly excited about the move, but she also doesn't really have a choice. She isn't making the trip with her mom, but since her dad's accident she doesn't drive, so she is being accompanied by Roger. He is the son of a friend of her mom's and Amy doesn't really know him all that well. Roger is pretty quiet at first and the start to their journey is a little tense. As the road trip goes on they start opening up to one another and realize it's not so bad being on the road together. Unsurprisingly, feelings start developing, but things aren't so easier for our main characters. They both have complicated pasts and they don't live in the same place. The progression of the relationship between them is very realistic and low key. It felt like something that you might really see happen and that made it all the more enjoyable to read.

I also really loved the scrapbook bits throughout the story and the roadtrip playlists at the end of some of the chapters. It made the road trip come to life even more. This is such a great story and a really fun ride. Definitely recommended :0)